Curio Cabinet

A lot of cells can really motivate along, and that’s great—until it’s not. According to a paper published in Nature Structural & Molecular Biology, researchers at Rockefeller University’s Laboratory of Structural Biophysics and Mechanobiology have finally figured out how cells build filopodia, the tiny, finger-like protrusions that some cells use to move through the body. More than just solving a mystery, however, the discovery may lead to better cancer treatments. Until recently, the process by which filopodia formed was something of a mystery. Filopodia are made of a protein called fascin, which bind actin filaments, or thin, flexible protein fibers together. On its own, actin isn’t particularly strong, but when stitched together in a hexagonal bundle they become strong enough to stick out from a cell and move back and forth to propel it forward. Filopodias’ formation process was captured using advanced imaging technology like cryo-EM and tomography, and understanding the process might help treat certain kinds of cancer. That’s because cancerous cells use the same mechanism to form filopodia and move around, allowing them to spread, or metastasize. In some cases, the process of filopodia-building goes haywire, creating much more than is needed for cancer cells or even creating filopodia where they shouldn’t be, accelerating the cancer’s spread. There are already fascin inhibitors (drugs that block the protein fascin) to try to address this issue, but knowing more about filopodia might lead to better versions in the future. Soon enough, cancer might not have a leg to stand on.

Gorillas really aren’t supposed to fly. Earlier this month, a five-month-old gorilla was rescued from a plane’s cargo hold after someone tried to illegally import him into Thailand by way of Istanbul, Turkey. The baby primate, now named Zeytin, is recovering at Polonezkoy Zoo, and workers there hope that he may one day be reintroduced to the wild. Zeytin’s plight highlights a growing problem for wild gorilla populations: the illegal pet trade. But this is far from the only threat faced by the world’s largest primates.
 
Male gorillas can stand up to six feet tall and weigh up to 500 pounds, while females generally grow to around 4.5 feet tall and weigh around 250 pounds. Despite their enormous size and strength, these giants are fairly gentle. Most of their diet is made up of plants, though they also eat insects, like termites. Male gorillas may be famous for pounding their chests and shrieking, but such displays are actually fairly rare and are used to intimate opponents in order to avoid real fights.
 
There are two gorilla species: Eastern and Western, each of which has its own subspecies. All four kinds live in central and east African rainforests, and all four are endangered. Like many rainforest animals, their habitat has been rapidly shrinking due to human encroachment and the expansion of the logging industry. However, the biggest and most violent threat to gorillas is illegal poaching. Ape meat is seen as a delicacy in some wealthy areas, and gorillas are prone to being killed for their meat since they do not typically attack or run from people who get close to them.
 
All gorillas live in groups called families or troops that can have up to 50 members. Troops are composed of a dominant male, called a silverback, several adult females, and their young offspring. Gorillas don’t leave the troop they were born into until they’re between eight to twelve years old, which highlights another challenge they face: slow birth and growth rates. Gorillas live to be between 35 to 40 years old in the wild, but females only have one baby at a time, with gestation taking around 8.5 months. Since each baby takes around a decade to fully mature, gorilla populations struggle to bounce back after poaching attacks or habitat destruction. Luckily, conservationists have implemented captive breeding programs around the world and some countries have enacted laws to protect gorilla habitats from further destruction. Here’s hoping that brighter times are ahead for these dark-furred wonders.

 
[Image description: A gorilla sitting in green grass at the Pittsburgh Zoo.] Credit & copyright: Daderot, Wikimedia Commons. This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication.

Don’t read this if you can’t stand to have your heart broken. Many penguins famously mate for life, a romantic fact that has helped make them some of the world’s best-loved birds. However, a 13-year study into the breeding habits of little penguins (Eudyptula minor) has revealed that the diminutive birds are surprisingly prone to “divorce.” Also known as fairy penguins, little penguins, as their name suggests, only grow to around 14 inches tall and only weigh about three pounds. But big drama sometimes comes in small packages. Researchers from Monash University in Australia tracked the breeding habits of around a thousand little penguin pairs on Phillips Island. The island is home to the world’s largest colony of the species, with a population of 37,000 or so. Of all the pairs they studied, around 250 ended up “divorced”, with the pairs splitting up and seeking new breeding partners.
 
So, what causes penguin divorce? Struggles with infertility, mostly. Penguin couples were much more likely to part ways when they failed to produce offspring. While divorce rates could be as high as 26 percent in some years, rates went down when the colony saw more successful hatchings. Marital bliss isn’t determined by offspring alone, though. According to one of the researchers, Richard Reina, little penguins aren’t exactly known for their faithfulness. In a university press release, he explained, “In good times, they largely stick with their partners, although there’s often a bit of hanky-panky happening on the side.” It might be hard to swallow the idea of adorable penguins divorcing and cheating on each other, but this study into little penguin behavior is important for the future of conservation. Current efforts to protect penguin species are focused on the impact of climate change, but studies like this show that there are complex social dynamics to consider as well when trying to maintain a healthy population. No word yet on whether there are little penguin divorce lawyers.
 
[Image description: A little penguin standing just underneath some type of wooden structure.] Credit & copyright: Sklmsta (Sklmsta~commonswiki), Wikimedia Commons. This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication.